"We won't rule out adding a starter, but I think it's unlikely at this point," Cherington said during a taping of a NESN Hot Stove special (via the Boston Herald). "We're going to keep looking for ways to improve the team, including the pitching staff, but I wouldn't expect any major changes between now and the report date."

Now, not to say anything bad about Cherington, or to suggest he's being anything less than truthful, but these things can always change. Even Cherington noted that while he expects the Red Sox to go into spring with Jon Lester, Josh Beckett and Clay Buchholz as the three definite members of the rotation, the team could add a starter during spring training or during the season. Daniel Bard and Alfredo Aceves will go into spring trying to transition into starters and the team has also taken flyers on Vicente Padilla, Aaron Cook and Carlos Silva.

"We know that teams evolve," Cherington said (via the Providence Journal). "That doesn't mean you don't want to go into spring training with every position perfect and the team filled out, because optimally you would. That's never the case.

"The Cardinals are the obvious recent example of a team [evolving], but you can't count on that. You can't count on that and end up in the same spot they did. All we can do, we have the guys we have now and we'll keep looking for ways to add to that group and we don't know when those opportunities are going to come. We're confident that the group we have has a chance to be really good, and we'll do everything we can to add to that if there are opportunities."

The Red Sox could get Daisuke Matsuzaka back by midseason and also make a move at the trade deadline.

They have, but is Vicente Padilla going to move the scales on the AL East balance of power north? Doubtful, but the Red Sox have signed the 34-year-old right-hander to a minor-league contract, CBSSports.com's Jon Heyman reports.

Padilla was limited to just nine relief appearances for the Dodgers last season with neck problems, but there's word that he's healthy and back throwing in the mid-90s. He has already undergone a physical with the Red Sox, according to Heyman.

Padilla is 104-90 in his career with a 4.31 ERA in 237 starts and 330 appearances in parts of 13 seasons with the Phillies, Rangers, Dodgers and Diamondbacks. Although he served as a reliever early in his career, for the most part he's been a starter, going 97-81 with a 4.33 ERA and 1.362 WHIP as a starter.

As unimpressive as the signing sounds in the wake of the Yankees' moves, it's a low-risk deal for Boston. With Jon Lester, Josh Beckett and Clay Buchholz, the Red Sox don't need help at the top of the rotation, but at the rear, and if healthy, Padilla could fit there in a competition for the fifth spot along with Alfredo Aceves, Carlos Silva, Aaron Cook and others, while Daniel Bard will be given every opportunity to win the fourth spot in the rotation during spring.

What if players were only permitted to stay with the team that originally made them a professional? No trades, no Rule-5 Draft, no minor or major league free agency ... once you are a professional baseball player, you stay in that organization. This series shows how all 30 teams would look. We give you: Homegrown teams.To view the schedule/past entries of this feature, click here.

One of the main reasons we came up with this exercise was because of the massive amount of fighting in the comments sections over who "buys" their teams instead of drafting and developing their own talent. In some cases, the accusations are true. In others, they aren't. While these Red Sox don't have Adrian Gonzalez or David Ortiz or Josh Beckett, you'll certainly see several key, familiar names.

The top of the order is sick. If Hanley Ramirez had one of his good years, that's a top four that few in baseball could match. The entire pitching staff is really, really strong, too. Lester as an ace works fine and Masterson and Sanchez are pretty darn good in those slots. There was one point last season (May) when Sanchez was almost as good as anyone. Then you move into the bullpen and the back-end is what it was in 2011, with Bard and Papelbon. Here, though, we get to add Betancourt and Francisco to the mix. That's quite a bridge to Papelbon, and remember, this with a good rotation.

What's Not?

The lineup thins out quickly. It's not awful by any stretch, because Lowrie, Shoppach and Reddick are a decent 7-9, but Murphy isn't good enough to be a fifth hitter in a great lineup and we still can't be sure how Rizzo pans out. Also, there is no depth, either on the bench or in the bullpen. The onus is entirely on the main guys to shoulder the entire workload.

Comparison to real 2011

Let's avoid all the off-field crap and just focus on the issue at hand. Is this team better than the one that was in the AL playoff race until the final out of the season? The offense isn't as good, that's for sure. Most of the other spots are at least close, but the Rizzo/Gonzalez gap at first base is gigantic. Pitching-wise, though, this group is better, top to bottom. There's no Josh Beckett, but there also isn't a full season of John Lackey with mixed in Dice-K and then the spare-part injury replacements they had to use for most of the season. The real-life Red Sox won 90 games and this group feels like a similar one in terms of wins. It's not elite, but it's pretty good.

If you're the Marlins, it's worth two minor-leaguers in exchange for Ozzie Guillen, a manager with a .524 winning percentage over eight years and a World Series title.

If you're the Blue Jays, you seem to think your manager with one year of experience and a .500 record is worth a 27-year old starter with an All-Star appearance under his belt. The Boston Red Sox, apparently, don't agree.

While some may get up in arms about this trade possibility (or, really, non-possibility when you think about it), it makes sense from both sides. It's part of doing business -- the Red Sox needed a new manager after getting rid of Terry Francona, and in Farrell, there was a known commodity inside the organization (Farrell had been the Red Sox pitching coach) with major-league managing experience. He was a perfect fit. Except, you know, for that part about him already having a job and being under contract for the next two years.

That's where the Blue Jays had leverage -- if the Red Sox wanted Farrell, they could have him for a price. Asking for Buchholz is probably as close to saying "no" as you can without saying that word -- the Blue Jays didn't want to give up their manager that they like just fine, so the price was high. If they had to get a new manager, that manager would love to have Buchholz in the rotation, that's for sure.

While the Blue Jays seem to think their manager is worth quite a bit, the market tells us differently. So far this offseason, there's been a run this off-season on first-year managers. The Cubs, White Sox and Cardinals -- three marquee openings -- went to first-time managers, the White Sox hiring a guy who has never managed at any level. The market, it seems is saying experienced managers are not worth the money they command. If you have a Tony La Russa, it's fine to pay him a lot. But if you don't, go out and storm the Wal-Mart for your next manager and get him at a discount.

Trades for a manager are rare -- as the Guillen trade was the first since the Rays sent Randy Winn and a minor-leaguer to Seattle for Lou Piniella in 2002. That one didn't pay immediate dividends, but there are at least two trades for managers that did seem to be worth the price. The Mets sent right-hander Bill Denehy to the Senators for manager Gil Hodges after the 1967 season and the Mets went on to win the 1969 World Series. The Pirates got their own World Series-winning manager in a trade, sending veteran catcher Manny Sanguillen to the A's for Chuck Tanner following the 1976 season. Tanner led the Pirates to the 1979 World Series title (with Sanguillen, who was traded back to the Pirates after the 1977 season).

It's hardly out of the question for Guillen -- or Farrell -- to lead their team to the World Series, but it's more likely Buchholz will contribute more value than any manager, so the Blue Jays were right to ask for Buchholz and the Red Sox were right to say no.

Clay Buchholz appeared on WEEI on Thursday, speaking about the controversy that has followed the Red Sox since their September collapse left them out of the postseason.

Buchholz adamantly denied seeing beer in the dugout as Rob Bradford of WEEI tweets, but did seem to admit to drinking beer in the clubhouse, as Jon Lester has also admitted to. "It was maybe a bad decision on our part [to drink], but you've got to live with what you've done," he said on the radio according to the Boston Herald's Scott Lauber.

"The big problem with this team this year was that everybody on the team knew how good we were on paper," the Herald relayed Buchholz saying. He spoke about how pitchers hung out together in the clubhouse, and that was a good thing. He admitted to being "baffled" as to the reports of the schism in the Sox clubhouse, specifically defending fellow starter Josh Beckett, who has come under fire as of late. On WEEI, Buchholz says it is hard for him to grasp the criticism of Beckett.

"If anything, I would think Josh Beckett was different in a good way this year," he said, as the Herald writes.

Buchholz also added that pitching coach Curt Young and former coach John Farrell, now managing in Toronto, had "two different personalities." It seems as if Young was more genial as a coach and less restrictive, following in manager Terry Francona's footsteps. Meanwhile, Farrell was more strict with the pitchers.

The collapse of the 2011 Boston Red Sox has had significant fallout already, as manager Terry Francona is gone and general manager Theo Epstein appears to be on his way out as well.

And, since it's Boston -- just as would be the case in New York, Philadelphia, Chicago, Los Angeles, etc. -- the local crowd is ready to place blame. Things unraveled on a team that was expected by many to win the World Series, so it's someone's fault. Well, you have Francona and Epstein. Carl Crawford was awful after signing a huge contract. John Lackey was terrible again. But there's more ...

“It makes me angry that people say these things because I’ve busted my [butt] to be the best manager I can be,’’ Francona said (Boston.com). “I wasn’t terribly successful this year, but I worked harder and spent more time at the ballpark this year than I ever did.’’

On the "health" front, the report painted a picture of Francona's reliance on pain-killers.

• Reportedly the Red Sox players were angry that, in late August, they were forced to play a day-night doubleheader due to Hurricane Irene and complained to management that it cared more about money than winning. After that doubleheader, the Red Sox would not win two straight games again all season.

• Team captain Jason Varitek reportedly stopped exerting leadership in the clubhouse, while only Dustin Pedroia "and a few other players" remained fully committed to winning.

• And now the big one. The starting rotation, specifically Jon Lester, Josh Beckett, John Lackey and occasionally Clay Buchholz have been accused of regularly drinking beer and eating fast-food fried chicken while playing video games in the clubhouse during games. From the Boston.comarticle:

Drinking beer in the Sox clubhouse is permissible. So is ordering take-out chicken and biscuits. Playing video games on one of the clubhouse’s flat-screen televisions is OK, too. But for the Sox pitching trio to do all three during games, rather than show solidarity with their teammates in the dugout, violated an unwritten rule that players support each other, especially in times of crisis.

Sources said Beckett, Lester, and Lackey, who were joined at times by Buchholz, began the practice late in 2010. The pitchers not only continued the routine this year, sources said, but they joined a number of teammates in cutting back on their exercise regimens despite appeals from the team’s strength and conditioning coach Dave Page.

“It’ s hard for a guy making $80,000 to tell a $15 million pitcher he needs to get off his butt and do some work,’’ one source said.

For Beckett, Lester, and Lackey, the consequences were apparent as their body fat appeared to increase and pitching skills eroded. When the team needed them in September, they posted a combined 2-7 record with a 6.45 earned run average, the Sox losing 11 of their 15 starts.

Clay Buchholz took the next step towards returning to the Red Sox pitching staff by throwing to hitters for the first time since hitting the disabled list on June 16, WEEI reports.

"Location wasn’t what it should be, which is expected, but ball's coming out of my hand and no problem with the back. It feels good," Buchholz said. "[There was] no pain. Everything was fine. Trying to not compensate for anything and finish my delivery like I normally would."

Buchholz has been sidelined since June with a balky back and the team has missed him severely. His 3.48 ERA in 14 starts would be much welcome for a team that has struggled to fill the gap behind Josh Beckett and Jon Lester, but if Buchholz returns, it will be as a reliever, and may not even get into a game during the regular season. Buchholz doesn't mind either way, but hopes he can contribute in October at a minimum.

"That’s the team’s call if they want me to come back, get some innings in [against Baltimore]. Gotta see how this postseason run is going to be and go from there," said Buchholz. "[Pitching in the playoffs is] what I want to do. Today was a first step in that direction and everything felt good."

The righty threw 25 warmup pitches in the bullpen then simulated an inning against Jose Iglesias, Lars Anderson, Ryan Lavarnway and Joey Gathright, throwing 32 pitches in all. He said he was throwing at 85 to 90 percent intensity, afraid of harming a hitter. The Red Sox likely prefer that Buchholz doesn't go max effort in his first time throwing to hitters anyways. He was able to throw all his pitches which includea fastball, curveball, changeup and cutter.

His next simulated game could come on Thursday or Friday in New York provided his body responds well to Tuesday's outing. He believes that as long as his back holds up, he can make an impact in the postseason despite his arm being sidelined from game action for three months.

"I’ve been throwing pretty much the whole time, playing catch, not necessarily pitching. My arm doesn’t feel near as not ready as it does in the offseason going into spring training," said Buchholz. "Obviously, nobody wants to sit out two and a half months, three months. It’s been tough watching the guys go out there. Even when we’re playing good, I want to go out there. It’s tough right now. like I said, I’m trying to get to the point where I can come back and help this team win."

Boston right-hander Clay Buchholz would like to pitch in the playoffs -- if the Red Sox make it there.

Buchholz threw 30 pitches off the bullpen mound on Saturday, his first side session since he was shut down in July with a stress fracture in the lower back. He'll throw another bullpen, or even a simulated game, on Monday or Tuesday, Buchholz told reporters, including CBSSports.com senior writer Danny Knobler.

If Buchholz can come back, it's unlikely he'd be ready to start, but he could pitch out of the bullpen.

"My thought process hasn't ever been pitching in the regular season. I want to be back for the playoffs," Buchholz told reporters. "If we get to that point, and I feel good enough to pitch in that last (regular-season) series, then we'll see where I'm at. But my goal is to pitch in the playoffs and try to help this team win."

Buchholz, 27, was 6-3 with a 3.48 ERA in 14 starts this season. In his lone postseason start, in the 2009 ALDS against the Angels, he allowed six hits and two earned runs in five innings of a loss to Los Angeles.

Last season, when the Red Sox didn't make the playoffs, Buchholz broke out with a 17-7 record and 2.33 ERA, finishing sixth in American League Cy Young voting.